As the 2010 Games draw closer, a growing number of Lower Mainland residents are hoping to cash in by renting out their homes to out-of-town spectators. If you're thinking about it, but are worried the risk might be greater than the reward, there is an alternative that doesn't involve handing over the house keys to games' visitors.

Take Gastown resident Angela Bourhill. She loves her 1,400 square-foot Gastown loft, but like several others in her building, has no desire to live in it during the games.

"Where I'm situated, there's going to be so much security, so much going on. I'm not really big on crowds, so it was a good idea for me to remove myself from the downtown core," Bourhill tells CTV.

So she's heading to Mexico, renting out her home, and hoping to grab her own Olympic gold in the process.

"I actually rent my place out short-term when I go out of town anyway. It helps pay the bills, and I thought 'with the Olympics, you can probably get quite a bit more money -- which you can."

But Bourhill was initially wary about renting out to games visitors. Fearing damage, she looked to locally-based Prime Strategies for an option that provided more security and peace of mind.

A dozen other residents of Bourhill's building who are also hoping to cash in have followed suit. They're not interested in renting to games spectators, but have signed deals with the Vancouver company, which provides accommodation for the massive Olympic workforce.

"Typically, they're going to pay and have an expectation to pay a little bit less than what it would cost for a three or four star hotel, for comparable accommodation," says Ian Hamilton of Prime Strategies, which deals primarily with European broadcasters and other companies involved in the Olympics.

That means visitors will shell out between $7,000 and $9,500 to rent a place like Bourhill's for the month of February in 2010. Sounds like a pretty enticing way to make some quick-cash, but Hamilton has some advice for the average resident hoping for an Olympic windfall through renting out: be realistic.

"We often read that there are $20,000, $30,000, $40,000 deals out there. My experience is that there may be one or two, but that's not the norm," he says. "So lower your expectations, and be very careful who you're going to rent to, and how you're going to rent. You're entering into a business relationship with your own home."

As for Bourhill, she says she might come back from Mexico to watch the Olympics, but she'll have to find somewhere else to stay.

With a report from CTV British Columbia's Mike Killeen